Medieval origins The placename was first mentioned in 1210 as
Elsela, from the
Old Dutch , meaning
alder woods. The origins of the village date from the foundation of
La Cambre Abbey.
Hendrik I, Duke of Brabant, donated the Pennebeke domain to the
Cistercian nun Gisela in 1201. She in turn founded the Abbey, and in 1210, acquired property on which the duke ordered the construction of a mill. The Abbey was located near the springs of the
Maelbeek stream in the
Sonian Forest, the remnant of which closest to Brussels became known as the
Bois de la Cambre/Ter Kamerenbos in the 19th century. The Abbey was recognised by Jan III van Bethune, the
Bishop of Cambrai in 1202, soon after its foundation. The saints
Boniface of Brussels and
Alice of Schaerbeek were two of its most famous residents in the 13th century. , founded in 1201 Around 1300, during the reign of
John II, Duke of Brabant, a hostel was built near the Abbey to provide meals to the wood bearers working in the forest. Soon, a hamlet and a couple of chapels were built, including the Church of the Holy Cross, also inaugurated by the Bishop of Cambrai and dedicated to Mary and the Holy Cross in 1459. Initially, these hamlets and provisions were constructed for the labourers who helped drain and sanitise the marshlands. At that time, part of Ixelles was a dependence of Brussels; the other part was the property of the local lord.
Before the Revolution In 1478, the wars between King
Louis XI of France and
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, brought devastation to the Abbey and the surrounding areas. In 1585, during the period of the
Habsburg Netherlands, the Spanish burned down most of the buildings to prevent them from being used as a refuge by
Calvinists. The Abbey was restored in time for the
Joyous Entry of the Archdukes
Albert and
Isabella in 1599. Further manors and castles (Ermitage, Ten Bosch and Ixelles, for example) were built in Ixelles in the 16th century, gradually transforming the hamlet into a full-fledged village. Thanks to the Maelbeek springs and the purity of its waters, a brewing industry became active in the area. It started inside the Abbey, but by the 16th century, had expanded beyond its walls. Due to the liberalisation of beer manufacturing by the
Council of Brabant in 1602, the industry grew, which resulted in a lively scene by the banks of the spring. By the 17th and 18th centuries, around 20 breweries-cabarets had settled in Ixelles, among which Saint-Hubert, De Sterre and L'Italie.
Independent municipality In 1795, like many other towns surrounding Brussels, Ixelles was proclaimed a separate municipality by the
French regime after the
Revolution. The municipalities of Neder-Elsene ("Lower Ixelles", where the Abbey is located), Opper-Elsene ("Upper Ixelles", a Brussels suburb), Boondaal, Tenbos, and Solbos, all became part of Ixelles. Moreover, the Abbey was stripped of its religious functions, becoming among others a cotton-manufacturing plant, a farm, a military school, and a hospital. Many of the
medieval gates of Brussels that lined what is now the
Small Ring (Brussels' inner ring road) were taken down and more streets were built to accommodate the migration towards the suburbs. Ixelles' population grew nearly one-hundredfold, from 677 in 1813 to more than 58,000 in 1900. With this intense growth also came the
Francisation of the municipality. At the end of the 19th century, some of the ponds were drained, leaving only the so-called "
Ixelles Ponds", and a new Church of the Holy Cross was built in 1860. The first
trams appeared in 1884 and the first
cinema in 1919. By then, Ixelles and the Avenue Louise had become one of the most fashionable areas of Brussels. Artists and celebrities moved in, leading to architectural novelties such as
Art Nouveau and
Art Deco. ==Matongé==